The subject application is a continuation-in-part application of my copending patent application, Ser. No. 563,090, filed on Dec. 19, 1983 entitled COMBINATION VALANCE AND AIR CONDITIONED AIR ADMISSION AND RETURN DUCTS.
Rooms in structures and dwellings are typically heated by the circulation of heated liquids enclosed within piping systems, the admission of forced heated air through diffusers in a room, or by electrical resistance heating units. Additionally, the rooms are cooled by either an individual air conditioning unit or a central forced air system often combined with the forced air heating system. It has been considered good practice to locate the heat emitters or the forced air diffusers along an outside wall of the room and especially below a window in an outside wall where the temperature inside the room is most likely to be affected adversely by the outside temperature.
The method of circulating centrally heated liquids with associated radiation structures in the rooms has been employed to a considerable extent and is reasonably satisfactory where the structure has a basement or crawl space below the ground floor structure affording access to the piping associated with the heating system. However, with the currently widely used concrete slab which supports the dwelling, the piping is typically embedded in the concrete. Similarly, the plumbing for the houses is frequently embedded as well in the concrete. The serious disadvantage of this technique is that repairs to the system are often very costly.
Dwellings or structures constructed on the concrete slab or a flooring with essentially inaccessible crawl space beneath, are not well suited to perimeter heating at the baseboard level using forced air because the concrete slab or foundation will not readily accommodate air delivery ducts. Thus, the forced air diffusers and collection registers are typically placed in the ceiling with the associated ductwork above the ceiling which results in a less efficient method of heating or cooling a room. In the case where the air diffusers have been placed in the wall, it has not been feasible to locate them strategically relative to windows around sidewalls, because of the logistic problem in running ductwork through the walls. Additionally, diffusers located in the walls and the ceilings seriously detract from the aesthetic appearance of the room.
In the case of structures built on concrete slabs utilizing forced air systems, an additional problem arises in providing air return registers and ducts. Typically, one or several common registers are placed in a centrally located area usually in the ceiling and near the air conditioning unit. Locating the return air registers as such decreases the overall efficiency in the heating or cooling system, decreases the efficiency with which the conditioning of the air in the individual rooms can be controlled, and decreases the exchange rate of air in a room, particularly when both the diffusers and the return registers are located in or near the ceiling.
An improvement to the forced air heating and cooling method has been made by the subject applicant, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,779,150, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference, wherein heated or cooled air is supplied to a plenum or chamber located above a ceiling and in close proximity to an outside wall, typically above an outside window. The plenum chamber is triangularly shaped being formed by the sloped roof and horizontal ceiling on two sides and by a closure panel installed on the third side spanning the space between adjacent joists and rafters in the attic. The plenum generally extends the length of the outside wall and is enclosed on its ends by triangular shaped side panels attached to the outer surfaces of the joists and rafters. The heated or cooled air that is delivered to the plenum is then directed into the room through diffusers located in the ceiling. The diffuser is typically an elongate relatively narrow aperture or series of apertures that are parallel to and extend along the exterior wall of the structure. A valance is provided along the apertures toward the center of the room that serve to both conceal the apertures from view from the room and also to assist in directing the air from the diffusers in a downwardly direction from the ceiling. An additional baffle board between the wall or curtains and the apertures assists in directing the air emerging from the apertures in a downwardly direction and serves to block the flow of air over the top of the drapery and into the space been the drapery and the window. This improvement provides a more efficient way of diffusing heated or cooled air into the room, enhances the comfort of the room by establishing a layer of conditioned air along the exterior wall between the room and the window, and further provides an aesthetically acceptable method of concealing the apertures or diffusers located in the ceiling.